Some cars leave a paper trail; the McLaren MCL39 left a name and a place in Mclaren's list. What follows is what can be said with a source behind it. The shape is credited to Rob Marshall.
Where it came from
The McLaren MCL39 is a Formula One car constructed by McLaren and designed under the direction of Rob Marshall to compete in the 2025 Formula One World Championship. It was driven by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in their seventh and third seasons with the team respectively. It successfully defended the World Constructors' Championship title and won the World Drivers' Championship with Norris as he became the first McLaren champion since Lewis Hamilton in 2008. Favoured by commentators in the pre-season to defend McLaren's title, the MCL39 was consistently the fastest car in the field and successfully defended the WCC, securing it at the 2025 Singapore Grand Prix.
Norris secured the WDC at the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The MCL39 was the first McLaren since the Adrian Newey-designed MP4/13 of 1998 to win both titles in the same season. The MCL39 won fourteen Grands Prix in 2025, each driver winning seven apiece. The car scored thirteen pole positions, set twelve fastest laps, and finished on the podium a record total of thirty-four times. The car, in the hands of Norris, also set the Formula One record for fastest race lap by average speed at the Italian Grand Prix.
Under the skin
the output is NNN hp. On the scales it comes to 800 kg. The wheelbase is NNNN mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
In context
In the Mclaren line-up the McLaren MCL39 has a clear place: it replaced the McLaren MCL38; it handed the line to the McLaren MCL40. Nearby in the Mclaren catalogue sit the McLaren M15 and the McLaren M16.